Hi
I’ve just had a call to say my diep recon is going to be 21st June, any advice on what I need to take into hospital. I’m in abit of a shock I was told it would be in October but they have just had a cancellation.
Gillian xx
bump
Hi Gillian I know it’s a shock having the news that your DIEP is being bought forward but try not to worry. I had my DIEP at East Grinstead on 7th May and 5 weeks post op I feel good and am driving again. Here is a list that might help you for your op :
- Front fastening / buttoning nightshirt or shirts. You will be in a gown usually for the first 24 hrs post-op until you are allowed out of bed. They will check the flap regularly (At my hospital I was on 30 min obs thru the night) and then it goes down to hourly, 2 hourly, etc so you will want a top that you can allow easy access to. Also you will have drains in so somethiing loose fitting is more comfortable.
- Loose fitting pj bottoms or tracksuit pants -again you will have drains in your abdomen and they will check your tummy so comfortable is best.
- Big pants -shapewear from M+St etc - firm or medium control at the least and the higher they come up your torso the better - this will help support your tummy when you are up and about and help with the swelling and pain.
- Toiletries - usual stuff but do also take baby wipes and shower gel. You will find it takes a day or two before you will have strength to go for a shower. I had a bed bath with help from nurses and shower gel was easier than soap. Wipes will help you feel a bit more comfortable during the time you can’t get out of bed.
5.Water - you have to drink lots and lots - minimum 5 litres a day - my hospital did provide fresh cold water jug and cup and straw but you might want to bring your own in sipper bottle too. - Something to read / book/ mags / ipads etc - you will spend a few days in bed and when you are not sleeping you will get bored.
- Dressing gown and slippers - try and take one with pockets so when you go for a wander you can stick your drain bottles in the pocket.
- Loose comfortable clothing for going home in - today is the first day I have been able to tolerate wearing jeans - 5 weeks on! -. And I have lived in trackies for the last few weeks.
- Phone to keep in touch with your loved ones.
- You might want to take some light snack type food in - although I was really lucky and had lovely food at my hospital - but didn’t eat much for the first couple of days post op. You will also be nil by mouth from @9pm the night before and no water from 6am morning of op.
My hospital also had a contraption called a "bear hugger"which is a bit like a hot air blanket which they put over you and it keeps you very warm. They like to keep the flap really warm. I couldn’t tolerate it and asked for it you be taken off (am in premature menopause due to chemo so always hot!)… You will also have to wear surgical stockings the whole time you are in hospital and for at least two weeks when you come home. They will also put inflatable boot things on for the first few days while you can’t get out of bed (to counteract blood clots). You will be on a PCA - morphine pump - for a day or two so you can top your own pain relief up and you will also have a catheter in until you are mobile.
I am not sure where you are having your procedure but at East Grinstead the staff were amazing. I had major complications with my flap and had 4 ops in 24hrs. The staff really looked after me. They were fantastic. The worst bit is getting up the first time and getting out of bed as your tummy is sore and it’s quite uncomfortable. But do perservere getting up gets you stronger and you will find it helps to go to the toilet and shower - it made me feel a lot better. Good luck for the 21st. Even with all my complications my recon looks great and I am so glad I did it. Do let us know how you get on Emma x
Oh and sorry stupidly I forgot you also need at least two sports bras - try and get a couple in different sizes as you may be smaller then you are now (or bigger if you are small in case of swelling). You wiill need to wear both the “big pants” and the sports bras for several weeks when you get home and you won’t feel up to much the first week or so, so I would suggest you get several and a good selection. Primark and Sainsburys Tu do a good range and are a lot cheaper than M+S. I am still in them and expect to wear them for at least two months. Hope this helps. Best wishes Emx
Hi Em
thank you for all the information, glad you are doing well
take care
Gillian xx
This is a really helpful thread. I am just in the process of planning my reconstruction. I am just confused about the big pants - don’t they hurt?
I didn’t take big pants I wore my normal knickers. Only other thing I would suggest taking in is a bag to put your drains in - I had a fancy Harrods small carrier bag. Couldn’t stand wearing even a sports bra so wore one of the very soft pull on sleep bras and then switched to a support/control long vest type top.
Good luck for your operation - hope all goes according to plan.
HI Coach Just to clarify I didn’t take my “Big Pants” in when I went to hospital as Noone told me I would need them so I didn’t pack any! But the nurses did tell me I woud need them post operatively once I was there (it was really helpful !!!) I actually didn’t start wearing them until I got the abdo drains out (I sent hubbie off to get some for me!) which was about 4 days after the op. And I am still wearing them 6 weeeks later. I have found they have really helped support my tummy and my scar has settled down nicely and they don’t hurt. I suppose it depends where you are having the procedure etc whether you will need the big pants.And Supertroupers right about the bag for your drains - although I stuffed them in my dressing gown pockets!
Good luck with you op and recon. Hope it all goes well.
Hi CoachK
i am currenty just over five weeks frm MX and DIEP. i was paranoid about the Bridget Jones’ as I thought they must be painfull but when i orked up the courage to put tem on it felt so good! They support you really well and I was able to walk upright on day 3. It s a palaver (especially with the drains in) and I found I needed help to get them on and off. I held the front away from my scar and other person pulls them up from the back. I never had any discomfort wearing them. I did a daily update on the forum of all the little ‘baby steps’ - they might seem minor but at the time they were extremely major.
pm me if you want any more info
Carol
Hi
Can I ask something about big pant sizes when you are buying something pre-op for post-op. Did you buy the same size? I havent decided on which op to have yet but thinking about one of the tummy ones and the nurse was talking aobut ti being over the summer. Also re bras, I’m guessing that sports bras are meant to be better than normal bras?
Hi jenny re: big pants I am a size 10/12 and got size 12 (Primark size 12/14) which have been fine. The swelling is going down but am still wearing them as they do help support and compress the scar tissue. Re: bras - sports bra are a definite must have as they will support you comfortably - you don’t want anything underwired or that will dig into you. Front fastening good if you can find them. And different sizes too. Hope that helps and all the best with your procedure. Emma
THanks Emma
Still really struggling to work out which op to have at the moment but I know there’s some basic practical stuff I’m going to need. I don’t have any sports bras in my drawer as I don’t find them comfortable so need to do some shopping.
Gillian should have had her op by now so I hope it all went okay.
Hi Jenny, I know its a really difficult decision to make. I really didn’t want the DIEP at first, but I am so glad I decided to bite the butlet and go for it. My new “boob” is amazing and I have a tummy tuck too! It was hard going the first few weeks, but in the long run it’s worth it. But do your research as its not for everyone and there are alternatives. Hope it all goes well whatever you decided to do - do keep us posted on the forum. Hope Gillian is good too. Best wishes Emma x
Jenny29, I was a size 12 and bought x2 -16 & 14. I could only wear the 16 frist after the diep, then went down to a 14 and held for sometime. I take forever for the swelling to subside have used them again for stage 2. I bought mine at the hospital online at Matalan. I bought different colour cotton sports bras on Amazon (3 for 15£) for day wear (a pop of colour is nice) and Sainsbury’s £5 stretchy no cup/wire for sleeping in. Those are so comfortable and the best for sleeping bras that I have found.
Thanks. Did you consider the TRAM as well? It sounds like the DIEP has less risk of long-term side-effects.
Still waiting for my scan results at the moment, I don’t what to expect from them.
Hadnt thought of Amazon for bras, seem to buy everything else from them. My weight tends so fluctuate a little bit anyway so the advice about buying several sizes is good.
Jenny29, I did consider a tram until I saw a woman at my BS’s office who was getting her nipple tattoos. Three things did not sit well for me regarding her tram (and tram in general), 1) cutting muscle as I workout qute a bit and I wanted as much movement to stay intact as possible, 2) there was a wavyness/ rippling to the front (what is known as pole) of the chest going up towards the collar bone because the muscle used was well worked and a filler can be placed to smooth that out and for me that defeats the purpose of having “all me” rather than an implant and 3) I did not want a scratchy looking scar on my back (LD). I was told, at this point in time (or last June 13th), a diep is the gold standard of recon. The hardest thing overall was getting used to the flap, the 20 inch hip to hip incision to heal and getting used to no breast sensation as well as a numb stomach area for yonks but that is coming back. I had to have an mx and was able to haveimmediate recon because we have health insurance that covered it. Think it over, diep is long in the short term, I’m going in on July for another revision, yet in the long run, for me the best choice to be made. I wanted cotton sports bras and these from Amazon have the highest cotton content I could find and a good deal. I bought medium and if your are a b/c cup buy the large. I have faith that you will make the best decision for you Jen.
Does anyone know if Gillian has posted since her surgery? I hope all went well, and I’ll go root around the threads and see if she has.
Thanks. Don’t think my muscles there are well-worked! so guessing I wouldnt necessary get that rippling but would prefer fewer long term side-effects. I’m trying to think of the long-term rather than just short-term. Had numbness the last time so expecting that. This means that if I decide a Diep is best for me going to a hospital in another town rather than locally. Still at the crying stasge but I’m finding hearing about other womens experiences is helping me to get a little closer to trying to come to terms with it all.
Jenny, my diep was done at a hospital an hour and half away. My BS told me to look at the big picture (just like you) rather than how this in interfering with my and my family life. She pointed to the timeline of life and that the inconvenience of where my surgery was taking place was a blink of the eye compared to whole and as we know, diep once signed off as finished if forever. That is what hooked me, not wanting to revisit this experience on the same breast. I’m sorry the waiting and stress is depressing you. This is what cancer want’s, it takes over our lives, comsumes us and disrupts to the core who we are and who we love. When I was waiting last year for my surgery, I called the BCC helpline a number of times. I swear, the woman on the other end of the phone are amazing. Talk it thorugh with one of them and see if you can move closer to a settled decision - one you can anchor on and move forward from. You are doing really well and in the near future, this decision will be behind you. Walks in the woods with our dog helped me to have a glimpes of feeling normal and gave a bit of space to my upset and worry. Be kind to yourself, LB, x
Hi Ladies
now 7 days post op, I got home from hospital yesterday.
op went really well, woke up with 4 drains, a bit sore but nothing to bad. Managed to get out of bed day 3. The whole experience wasn’t half as bad as I thought it would be didn’t even feel the drains being taken out.
was treated at Salisbury hospital, what a great hospital the nurses, ward and plastic surgeon were all lovely and I was treated so well.
so far it looks great I feel battered and bruised, can’t wait to see the result in a couple of weeks.
i bought my big knickers from tesco 2 for £8. They are control pants and 2 sizes bigger than my normal size.
i haven’t had chance to read past posts but hope all you ladies are doing well.
take care all
Gillian xxx
Gillian, I’m so pleased to read your post and that all went well. Nice to know Salisbury hospital and staff are top notch. Relax and let all wait on you and again, I’m pleased it was better than you thought. Gentle hugs, LB, x